The Browns’ head coach did not apologize for kicking Joe Haden out of today's practice. But then, he refused to talk about sending the high-priced cornerback to the showers after getting rough with rookie wideout Travis Benjamin.

Haden, a former Florida Gator, mixed it up with Benjamin, a former Miami Hurricane, early in the last of 21 practices open to the public.

It was the kind of moment one might have expected more from Haden’s sidekick, safety T.J. Ward, who frequently gets chippy with offensive players in 11-on-11 drills.

Live tackling has been banned in all 21 practices. Haden was late arriving to a Brandon Weeden pass to Benjamin. He closed fast at the end and rammed into the rookie wideout, who went down.

Shurmur judged that Haden had crossed a line. Benjamin is a valuable man, the fastest on the team, but his durability is a concern. He also is the lightest man on the team, at 173 pounds. He missed the preseason game at Green Bay with what he called “nicks and bruises.”

Plenty of fans took notice of Shurmur’s fiery reaction to the incident.

After practice, Shurmur signed autographs along the gallery ropes, a few feet from Benjamin.

“Way to get emotional,” one fan said to Shurmur. “That’s good to see. We like emotion.”

Shurmur responded politely, then headed off for his daily press briefing, where he sternly refused to explain why he gave Haden the boot.

“That’s between me and the player,” Shurmur said. “If you want details, you’ll have to find them on Twitter.”

That was some sort of dig from Shurmur, who has talked openly about his disdain for certain aspects of Twitter.

Haden stayed holed up in the team complex until the media left. He did not immediately send out a tweet. Benjamin likewise was not available for comment.

Wide receiver Josh Cribbs laughed off the Haden-Benjamin exchange.

“Boys will be boys,” Cribbs said. “It’s football. They hug and make up. No problems.”

That problem may pass. Shurmur said he has “the utmost respect” for Haden, probably the best cornerback the Browns have had in the expansion era.

The heat of the moment lasted a while, though. When one writer asked a followup question about the Haden-Benjamin incident, Shurmur responded as sharply as he has in any of his meetings with the media.

“Don’t ask,” he said. “I’m not talking about it any more.”

Still hanging over Haden’s head is a possible suspension for testing positive for a banned substance.

“Whatever the case,” Cribbs said, “we’re about to play football. We’re about to win games.”